One Fall
by Aro the Purple Demon
Summary: Strange lockets, random drops into the oceans, hyperactive captains. Yup, Nix Kenna's life is completely normal. At least, as normal as it can be after being stuck in another world.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**  
**In Which Nix is Tossed into the Sea**

* * *

_"Ships that pass in the night, and speak each other in passing, Only a signal shown, and a distant voice in the darkness; So on the ocean of life, we pass and speak one another, Only a look and a voice, then darkness again and silence."_

-Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

* * *

"JUUUUUICEY!" I grinned as I handed my nephew his sippy cup. My brother looked up at me from his desk.

Ciro D. Kenna was my older brother by three years, putting him at 22. His son, Seraphim, was two. They were both ash blond and blue eyed. A big difference from my black hair. Well, it's not naturally that color, it's more crimson than anything. They were living with me for a few months, Ciro being a college professor and out of a job. Not that I minded, I love kids and want some of my own. I just don't feel like being married.

"Here ya go, kid." I said, ruffling the toddler's hair. He giggled and slurped at his juice.

"You sure you don't mind us being here?" Ciro asked anxiously, watching me. I waved him off impatiently.

"Neh, you know I love you guys too much to turn you out." I grinned. "Besides, you know how much I wuv dis wittle guy!" I picked Seraphim, or just Sera, up and twirled around, sending him into another fit of giggles.

"Thank you, Nix." he said, smiling slightly as he adjusted his glasses. I grinned at him. My brother fit in the category of romantic teachers ready to sweep their students away. Not that Ciro had done any sweeping since Sera was born.

My brother's girlfriend, Athanasia, died giving birth to their kid. A bit odd considering her name meant eternal life. She was a bit too sweet for me, but my brother loved her and that was enough for me. He took her death hard, but he's better now.

"Anyways," I said, picking the baby up. "You should go to bed." He blinked and looked at the clock. 11:00 p.m.

"Huh," he mumbled. "Where did the time go?" I smirked.

"Say that and you'll sound like an old man." I ran and hand through his thick hair. "Eh? Is that a gray hair I see?" He bolted to the mirror and looked at his head frantically.

"What? No! I'm too young!" I snickered and took Sera into his room, tucking him in under his Lightning McQueen blanket. I blew him a kiss, which he pretended to catch, and shut off the light.

I walked down the red carpeted hall and to my room.

It had red plush carpet and black wood furniture. If it had knobs or handles, they were silver. My mirror was black like everything else, but had Latin written in a shimmering silver.

**_Tollite petunt_**  
**_Alium mundum_**  
**_Et vitam_**  
**_Adventure_**

I had translated it and it came out as:

_Take to_  
_Another world_  
_And seek_  
_Adventure_  
_And life_

I smiled and climbed into bed, changing into my pajamas. Something lumpy pressed against my arm and I reached beneath the covers to pull out a locket.

It was black, with silver egravings around the border. I turned it over and read the inscription.

**_Cum dimittes tuum semper sint in corde meo_**

"Though thou shalt leave, Thy will always be in mine heart." I murmered, translating it. With a shrug, I fastened it around my neck, lying down.

It wasn't hard for me to read a few languages. English was my first language, having grown up in America. Japanese was my second tounge, it being what my father spoke. Spanish and French because I took them in high school, and Latin because I had started college with the goal of becoming a lawyer. Then I realized something. I hate the government and everyone who works for it (which is to say, everyone, but we'll let that one slide, neh?). So I did a complete about-face and chased after art. My filing cabinent was littered with papers in Latin and drawings of beaches and anime characters.

The beach was my heart and soul. After moving out of my mom's house, I moved to California. However, I caught the homesickness bug and had to drag my but back to Boston. Don't get me wrong, I love me some Red Sox, but it just doesn't compare to the fresh air on the coast. Why I loved the ocean, I'll never know. I can't swim in a kiddie pool.

As for the anime characters, well, they're just fun to draw. The expressions draw me in, what can I say?

I closed my eyes and drifted off.

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

Not a moment after their closing, my eyes flew open. Ears straining, I listened for the sound again.

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

What was it? Why did it sound so familiar?

_Thump. Thump. Thump. Caw. Caw._

I blinked, throwing the covers off and standing up. I moved around the room, tip-toeing as I searched for the noise's source.

_Boom!_

I jumped and stared at my mirror, finding the beginning of the disturbance. It ran my fingers along it, feeling it tremble with some unknown impact. I squinted at the wall behind it and, upon finding nothing, bent down to examine the base. As I bent down, my new locket swung forward and collided with the glass. For one very frightening moment, I believed it was going to shatter. I let out a relieved breath as it connected with a shrill ping! and came back to rest on my collarbone once more.

But my relief didn't last long.

About three seconds after the contact, a light flashed from behind me. I spun around, startled, and cool hands grabbed the back of my white T-shirt and yanked me back.

Then I was falling . . . falling . . . falling . . .

_SPLASH!_

I gasped and spluttered as I hit the water, thrashing frantically for some purchase. Warm fingers grabbed my arm, pulling me up onto something solid and rocking. I coughed violently, emptying myself of nasty, salty tasting water.

"Are you alright?" a young and concerned voice questioned.

"-_cough_- Yeah, -_cough_- thanks for saving me, I -" Oh hell no.

I stared at the pink haired boy in front of my, eyes moving from him to his friend with a straw hat and back again. I repeated the process.

"What's wrong with her?" Luffy asked, poking my forehead.

"Luffy!" Coby hissed, looking at me fearfully.

Great, just what I needed. Dumped into an anime. What a life . . .


	2. The Pirate Hunter, Roronoa Zoro!

**Chapter Two**  
**In Which Nix is a Pirate**  
**Aka: Enter the Great Swordsman! Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro!**

* * *

_"Surprises are foolish things. The pleasure is not enhanced, and the inconvenience is often considerable."_

- Jane Austen

* * *

Luffy and Coby stared at the girl, who was obviously in shock.

Her black hair brushed her shoulders, the roots a blood red. Her green eyes stared at the horizon blankly.

"Are you alright?" Coby asked hesitantly.

"Eh?" she snapped out of her daze, looking at him with wide eyes. "Yeah, sure. What are you guys doing now?"

"We're gonna go get Zoro the Pirate Hunter!" Luffy laughed. "He's gonna join my crew!"

"Alright," she said simply, accepting it easier than Coby had.

"That's all you can say?" Coby shouted.

"At the moment, I'm in shock from falling into the ocean." she said calmly. "Give me a few more seconds." She paused. "Alright, I'm good. So, what kinda crew are you making?"

"A pirate crew!" Luffy grinned. "I'm Monkey D. Luffy and I'm gonna be King of the Pirates." The girl smiled and held out her hand.

"Nice to meet you Luffy," she said as he took her hand. "I'm Kenna D. Nix."

"Where'd you come from?" Coby asked after the introductions were made.

"Uh, I teleported?" she said, lying through her teeth. She couldn't very well tell them she came from a world where they were made up characters, could she?

"Teleported?" they repeated, Luffy sounding excited while Coby was skeptical.

"Yeah!" she said, an idea popping into her head. "I'm a magician!"

"Cool!" Luffy exclaimed. "Show us something!" Nix bit her lip.

"Got any cards?"

_**Knock. Knock.**_

They blinked and looked at her, or rather her locket, where the sound originated. However, Coby's eyes traveled down south a bit more, something Nix noticed. Needless to say, she wasn't happy.

"OW! Why'd you hit me?" he wailed.

"You were being a perv!" she snapped, pulling the locket off so she could get a better look at it. She slid her fingernails into the latch and pulled it open. She shrieked when a skeletal hand came out, dropping a deck of cards in her lap. "What the hell? Whose hand was that?" The hand came back out, this time holding a piece of parchment.

**Steven Bones**  
**Magical Pocket Verse**  
**You Ask For It, We Get It**

"That was awesome!" Luffy shouted, grabbing the locket and sticking his head in it. "Hey Steeeve! Wanna join my crew?"

"No thank you," a rattling voice said. "Ask the girl." Luffy pulled his head out and looked at Nix expectantly.

"What?" she asked, staring back at him.

"Wanna join my crew?" Nix bit her lip.

"Well," she considered her options. If she went with Luffy, she could be certain of her future, despite all of the dangers the Straw Hats went through. If she declined his offer he could A: refuse her refusal like he did with Sanji or B: left her go to her death or possible capture by Marines. "Sure!" Going with Luffy seemed like the better choice.

"Great!"

"Now that that's settled, I need to change." Nix said, glancing at her Nike shorts and now see-through T-shirt. Steve reached out of the locket and grabbed her arm, yanking her inside. "WHOA!" she yelped as the locket fell to the floor of the boat.

Steven turned out to be comprimised of a grinning skull and an arm. A black bellboy hat rested on top of his floating head. A bony finger pointed her towards a red door. She walked over to it, hesitating for a moment before opening it. Nix grinned.

There she decided, she loved the locket. After changing into a black jacket that reminded her of Edward Elric's, a pair of jeans, a black tanktop, and some converse, she began to explore the Pocket Locket, as she dubbed it. After ten minutes and a multitude of multi-colored doors later, she found a billiards room, a kitchen, a bedroom (that looked just like her one at home), a bathroom (that looked like the Prefects' bathroom from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire), and a laundry room.

With a grunt, she climbed back out of the locket.

"You're so cool!" Luffy said, watching her with wide eyes.

"You're not so bad yourself," Nix commented, grinning at him. Her grin turned to a frown when the mouth of the locket caught around her hips. "Fate has chosen a bad time to tell me I have a big butt. A little help?" Luffy reached out and grabbed her by her collar, yanking her out of the locket which surprisingly stayed in one place. "Thanks."

"You're welcome!"

"So, when are we getting there?" Nix decided to ask, looking at the pinkette.

"By tomorrow, probably," Coby said, looking at a chart.

"Cool," she said, sitting back and shuffling the cards she still held. "In the meantime, wanna see some card tricks?" She held up the ace of spades.

* * *

"What a day!" Luffy shouted, stretching as he sat on the small figurehead. "It's gorgeous!"

"As long as we stay on this heading, we should be there in no time at all."

"Wow Coby, you're great out here."

"We might actually reach the place where we're planning to go." Nix said, adjusting the top hat she found in the locket. It was black with a crimson ribbon tied around it.

"It's nothing, I'm just using the skills every sailor should know." Nix frowned. They didn't use the exact words they did in the anime. But then again, they were real now. There was no script to stick to. Luffy laughed excitedly. "There's really nothing to be so giggly about, because at the Marine base, they're holding a great pirate hunter."

"Roronoa Zoro," Nix said, cutting off what he was going to say. "He's sliced and diced his bounties up like a tomato. People've said he's a demon, just in human form."

"Exactly," Coby said, relieved someone was agreeing with him. Nix grinned.

"He sounds like a pretty cool guy, right Luffy?" she looked at the seventeen year old.

"Yeah!" he laughed. Coby just sighed. There was no winning with these two.

* * *

A little bit later, the three had sailed into the harbor.

"We're here!" Luffy said, raising a fist in the air. "The Marine Base City!"

"Sounds like an interesting place," Nix commented, following the boys as they made their way through town.

"Luffy, you've gotta be crazy if you think getting this guy to join your crew is the right thing!" Coby pleaded, trying to get his new friend to see reason.

"Well, I haven't made up my mind yet! I gotta see if he's a good guy."

"He's a prisoner!" Coby cried. "He can't be because he's obviously not!" Luffy ignored him and bought a pear.

"Hey, is that guy Zoro around here somewhere?" he asked, causing the people to freeze in fear.

"Maybe we shouldn't mention the name Zoro here, okay?" Coby whispered.

They started walking again.

"We should check out the base if you're gonna be a Marine," Nix said, walking beside Luffy. She ignored all the strange looks and curious stares she got from wearing her hat.

"Of course I am," Coby said. "I just don't think I'm ready yet."

"You'll never be ready if you don't take that first step." she said, watching the pinkette out of the corner of her eye.

"I'd have to ask Captain Morgan first," he said, making the people freeze up again.

Luffy laughed, walking on with Nix.

"This town is such a weird place!"

"That's odd," Coby said, coming up behind them. "I can understand people being scared of Zoro, but why are they scared of the marine captain?"

"He could be corrupt," Nix said, bringing the attention to her. "Power goes to peoples' heads. It makes them do strange things, things that could make people fear them."

"Maybe they were jumping around for the fun of it." Luffy suggested.

"How does that make any sense? Nix's idea is more realistic."

"This looks like the place." Luffy said, stopping in front of a large metal gate.

"I made it," Coby said, wiping his eyes as he began to cry. Luffy ignored him and attempted to climb the wall. Nix followed him, climbing onto his shoulders and pulling herself up onto the wall. When she was secured in place, she reached out a hand to her captain. "This is where we part ways. We didn't have long together but-"

"Thanks!" Coby stopped his speech and ran after Luffy, who was scrambling to sit beside the tophat-wearing girl.

"Get down from there!" he shouted at them.

"Now where's this demon?" Luffy asked, scanning the courtyard.

"They wouldn't keep him out in the open," Coby said, giving up on getting them down. "He's probably put in a prison cell below ground."

"Nope," Nix said, pointing at the man in question. "He's right there!"

The anime had been too kind to the Pirate Hunter. While it had shown him with a few patches of dirt and scratches, in reality, he was covered in deep cuts and bruises. Dirt caked his tan face, mingling with spatters of blood. From her place on the wall, Nix could smell him from the wall, a mixture of sweat, blood, and other bodily odors.

"If we untie those ropes, he could just walk away." Luffy grinned pointing at the green haired man.

"I dunno, Luffy." Nix said doubtfully. "Looks like he's been to hell and back. I wouldn't let him go ten feet without a bath and some medical treatment."

"He's fine!" Luffy said, waving her off. Nix shrugged good-naturedly and returned to studying the man.

His green hair was tucked beneath and blackish green bandanna, not unlike the color of Envy's from Fullmetal Alchemist. He leaned heavily against the post he was tied to. His muscles were prominent, despite his lack of sufficient nourishment.

"Don't be such an idiot, Luffy!" Coby snapped. "There's no telling what he'll do if you let him go! He might just kill us all!"

"What would be the point in that?" Nix asked, amused. "If we saved him, he'd be in debt to us. There's also the condition he's in, don't forget to consider that. If he was let go, I'd give him five minutes before he collapsed from exhaustion. Besides, we don't have a bounty, there's no reason for him to kill us."

Coby didn't say anything, but he still wasn't satisfyed.

"Don't worry, I could protect us." Luffy said confidently.

"Hey you three!" Zoro said suddenly, frightening Coby. Nix turned her green eyes towards him, meeting silverish ones. "You're an eyesore. Get lost."

"I resent that statement," Nix said, grinning as Coby almost slipped off the wall with fright. "I thought I looked pretty good." Zoro snorted.

A ladder appeared next to them, a little girl climbing up it. She shushed them before looking around and dropping a rope down. She slid down it, a small package held tightly in her arms.

Nix smiled as she attempted to feed them, but frowned as the guy with the football haircut arrived and ate the riceballs the girl made for Zoro. She lauched herself into the air without a second thought as the little girl was tossed over the wall. She just managed to catch her as Luffy jumped after them, wrapping his rubber arms around the two girls protectively.

"Thanks Luffy," Nix said gratefully as she sat the girl up gently. The black haired boy picked up his straw hat and set it on his head, handing Nix her own tophat. The two climbed over the wall, walking towards the pirate hunter. Nix listened to them talk, snickering when Zoro made Luffy feed him the muddy riceballs.

* * *

A few minutes later, Nix sat in front of a resturant with the little girl named Rica and the two boys, listening to her tell her story about how Zoro saved her from a rabid wolf. Hellmepo had Zoro locked up for saving the girl and hitting him. In exchange for him being tied up for a month, Rica and her mother could live.

"Told you he was a good guy, Coby."

"It's been three weeks since that day," Rica sniffled. "Hellmepo keeps puching him and kicking him while he's tied up. He's being so unfair! I don't- I don't know how to help him."

"I can see why you're upset."

"You're helping him just by trying, sweetie." Nix said, pulling the tearful girl into a hug, mother instincts kicking in. She really wished she had something to distract her.

**_Knock. Knock._**

"What's that?" Rica sniffled, looking up.

"Great timing, Steve-O!" Nix said, opening the locket.

Steven handed her two small red and white balls, giving her a thumbs up before disappearing again.

"What are those?" Coby asked, getting closer. Luffy mimicked him.

"PokeBalls?" Nix asked, pressing the button on one of them. In a flash of light, a Pokemon materialized in front of them. It cooed happily, tail swishing behind it, orange fur glistening in the sun. The Vulpix looked at her with soft eyes.

"It's so cute!" Rica said, hugging it. The Vulpix squeaked as it was suffocated with affection. Nix smiled and gently pried it away from her.

"Hello there," she said, petting it gently. "Such a cute occupation of pixel space. I think I'll call you Pixel." The Vulpix trilled, content with its name. Nix picked up the other PokeBall, but a crash distracted her from opening it.

They walked inside to find Hellmepo sitting at a table. Luffy ran up to him and smacked him with a fist as the blond laughed about executing Zoro.

"Luffy! No!" Coby shouted, holding him back. Nix held Pixel to her chest as Hellmepo shouted at Luffy for hitting him.

"This guy is scum!" Luffy growled. Nix walked behind them and picked up Luffy's hat, brushing it off carefully.

"You actually hit me!" Hellmepo cried, holding a hand to his cheek. "I am Captain Morgan's son you know!"

"So," Nix asked, glaring at him Hellmepo yelped as her gaze pierced him (figuratively of course). "I'm Kenna Angelise's daughter. Doesn't make me special."

"Why don't you be a man and fight?" Luffy asked.

"Luffy! Stop trying to get on the Marines' bad side!" Coby asked, still holding him back.

"I've made up my mind." Luffy said, stopping in his struggles. "Today, Zoro joins my crew."

He said it with such certainty, no one tried to deny his claims. Nix smiled, slipping the PokeBall into her pocket.

* * *

Not long after the conrontation in the resturant, Nix and Luffy stood before Zoro, Pixel resting on Nix's head.

"You again." Zoro sighed. "Don't you have things to do?"

"I'll untie you, but only if you promise to join my crew."

"Your what?"

"I run a pirate crew and I'm looking for people to join up."

"No way!" Zoro said. "I'd never stoop to joining up with a criminal. Screw that business."

"We haven't done anything, yet." Nix grinned.

"What's wrong with pirates?" Luffy demanded.

"They're despicable! Like I'd ever want to join up with one."

"You've never met the right kind," Nix said dismissively.

"Oh come on, give me a break." Luffy said. "Everyone already knows you as some vicious bounty hunter always out for blood."

"People can say whatever they want about me, but I've never done a single thing in my life that I regret." Zoro smirked. "I will make it through this challege. And after that I'll accomplish what I want." Nix grinned.

"Yeah, that's great." Luffy said humoring the green haired man. "But I've already decided you're going to be on my crew."

"WHAT?" Zoro yelled. Nix smirked. When Luffy was determined to do something, it was done. So was the will of D. "You can't do that!"

"I hear you're one of the best swordsmen around."

"Well, I am! But that idiot captain's son took my swords away."

"Guess I'll just have to go get them back for you." Luffy said, grinning.

"What?" Nix grinned at his surprise.

"So if you want your sword, you'll just have to join my crew!" Nix's grin widened. Nami would be proud of Luffy if she saw this.

"Now you're really pissing me off!" Zoro shouted as Luffy ran off.

"It's the other way," Nix called after him.

"Oh, thanks!" Luffy turned around rocketed towards the base.

"What the hell is this guy?" Zoro asked, shocked.

"Hyperactive," Nix said, hanging a buch of car fresheners on him.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?"

* * *

Nix sat a few feet away from Zoro, Pixel curled up in her lap. She pulled out the PokeBall from earlier and examined it. It seemed to be just like the Vulpix's, but there was writing on it.

**_Good luck on your adventures!_**  
**_- Mom_**

"Mom knew this was going to happen?" Nix asked incredously. Her mother had died when she was ten. Despite that, Nix still called the place where she moved out of, her mom's house.

With a sigh, she pressed the button and waited for the light to fade.

"Togepriiiiiiii!" the Pokemon trilled (who's that Pokemon!)

"It's a Togepi!" Nix said, picking the little Pokemon up and grinning at it. "They're supposed to be good luck to anyone who makes them happy." The

Togepi trilled again, wiggling happily in her grasp.

"What the hell is that?" Zoro asked, staring at the baby. First the fox thing and now a spiky ball in an egg? What was next, dinosaurs?

"It's a Pokemon," Nix said, standing up and picking Pixel and the Togepi up carefully. "They're good companions and fighters."

"Hm," Zoro hummed, watching her move closer. "So who exactly are you?"

"Kenna D. Nix," she said, nodding at him. "This is Pixel and the Togepi is named Sweet-Pea."

"Sweet-Pea?" he snorted.

"What?" she asked defensively. "It seems to fit." Zoro rolled his eyes. Sweet-Pea trilled and tried to copy him.

"Nix!" Coby said, running up to them. "What are you doing here?"

"Living," she said, blinking at him.

"Er, nevermind." he began to untie Zoro. "You have to get out of here.

"That maniac's gonna kill you for what you're doing right now." Zoro told him.

"I can't stand to watch the marines behave like this," Coby said. "A true marine should be honorable."

"Look kid, I can't leave! I've got ten days left!"

"Do you really think they're just gonna let you go?" Nix asked, frowning at the man. "Hellmepo plans on executing you. He's just screwing with you first. Morgan's planning on dealing with Rica later."

"End of the line," Morgan said, coming up behind them.

"Hm," Nix mused. "If I'm gonna fight, I'll need more than Pixel to do so. Gimme whatcha got Steve-O." She opened the locket. Steven held out a paper fan with an ebony handle. Nix frowned and handed him Sweet-Pea. "Cool fan, but how's it gonna help me?"

She held the fan out in front of her, examinging it. It was black, with the red outline of flames on it. She waved it slightly. A gust of wind sliced through the dirt, leaving a small tornado at her feet.

"For the crime of treason against me, I sentence you all to die where you stand."

"Hm, that's useful." Nix commented, ignoring Morgan. Behind her, Coby braced himself, tears running down his face. Nix stood before the marines, directly in the line of fire, fan held loosely in her hand. A smile played about her lips. "If I die now, I'm gonna do it with style and class."

The marines aimed their guns at the trio. Morgan and Zoro exchanged words before the gun was fired. As the guns went off, Luffy leapt in front of them, making the bullets bouce back off of him and at the marines.

"What the-!" Zoro asked. "Who the hell are you?"

"My name's Monkey D. Luffy," he said, turning to look at Zoro. "And I'm going to be King of the Pirates!" He gave him a thumbs up, grinning like only Luffy could. Nix smiled.

_Yep, life's gonna get real interesting with these guys._


	3. Morgan vs Luffy!

**Chapter Three**  
**In Which Nix Fights**  
**Aka: Morgan Versus Luffy! Who's the Mysterious Pretty Girl?**

* * *

_"The unreal is more powerful than the real, because nothing is as perfect as you can imagine it, because its only intangible ideas, concepts, beliefs, fantasies that last. Stone crumbles. Wood rots. People, well, they die. But things as fragile as a thought, a dream, a legend, they can go on and on."_

- Chuck Palahniuk

* * *

_[**Previously on One Fall:**]_

_"End of the line," Morgan said, coming up behind them._

_"Hm," Nix mused. "If I'm gonna fight, I'll need more than Pixel to do so. Gimme whatcha got Steve-O." She opened the locket. Steven held out a paper fan with an ebony handle. Nix frowned and handed him Sweet-Pea. "Cool fan, but how's it gonna help me?"_

_She held the fan out in front of her, examinging it. It was black, with the red outline of flames on it. She waved it slightly. A gust of wind sliced through the dirt, leaving a small tornado at her feet._

_"For the crime of treason against me, I sentence you all to die where you stand."_

_"Hm, that's useful." Nix commented, ignoring Morgan. Behind her, Coby braced himself, tears running down his face. Nix stood before the marines, directly in the line of fire, fan held loosely in her hand. A smile played about her lips. "If I die now, I'm gonna do it with style and class."_

_The marines aimed their guns at the trio. Morgan and Zoro exchanged words before the gun was fired. As the guns went off, Luffy leapt in front of them, making the bullets bouce back off of him and at the marines._

_"What the-!" Zoro asked. "Who the hell are you?"_

_"My name's Monkey D. Luffy," he said, turning to look at Zoro. "And I'm going to be King of the Pirates!" He gave him a thumbs up, grinning like only Luffy could. Nix smiled._

_Yep, life's gonna get real interesting with these guys._

* * *

[Present:]

"You're going to be King of the Pirates?" Zoro asked disbelievingly. "Right, you must be completely out of your rubbery mind. Do you have any idea what that means?"

"To be King of the Pirates means being the King of the Pirates. How can it be anything else?" Nix stifled a giggle at his simple explanation.

"Yeah, it's surprising, but he's completely serious!" Coby said, a hint of pride in his voice. "That's how he is, I suppose, because he seems to have every intention of fufilling his dream and obtaining the world's untimate treasure, the One Piece!" Luffy grinned at them.

"Here, I couldn't figure out which one was yours so I just took all of them." Luffy held out the three swords to the green haired man.

"They're all his, Luffy." Nix said, practicing off-handedly with her fan. "He uses the three sword style."

"Take them already, just know that if you fight with me now you'll be a government defying villan."

"Either that or the marines get to excute you for doing what was right." Nix finished, turning back to them.

"What are you, the son of the devil?" Nix snorted. _No, he's the son of a dragon._ "What does it matter? If I don't choose your side, I'll end up dead on these sticks. So let's do it." Nix grinned as Luffy laughed triumphantly.

"So you're finally gonna join my crew!" The seventeen year old did a little victory dance.

"Would you quit celebrating already and get these ropes off of me?" Zoro snapped.

Nix rolled her eyes and moved forward, trying to untie the knots. She frowned.

"They tied these pretty tight." she muttered, attempting to knaw through one.

"Let me try," Luffy said, and began pulling on them. Meanwhile, the marines began to charge them, swords drawn. "That's funny. The knots got tighter instead of looser."

"Give me one of my damn swords now!" Zoro shouted. Nix scowled and spun around, fan poised to blow them away. With a flick of her wrist, she sent one marine flying. With her free hand, she tossed one of Zoro's swords at his head.

_Shing!_

Zoro leapt in front of Nix, blocking all the swords with a single move.

"Oooh, thanks!" she said cheerfully, closing her fan with a _swish_!

"Make one move and you die," he told the marines.

"He's scary," they sobbed.

"Today, I officially become a criminal having fought the marines, so I'll join your crew, that I can promise you. But I want you to know one thing: while I'm with you, the only thing I dedicate myself to is fufilling my dream."

"Which is?" Luffy asked.

"To become nothing less than the world's greatest swordsman. If somewhere along the way, I have to deviate from you to do that, I'll do it and expect an apology."

"The World's Greatest Swordsman," Luffy said, trying out the title. "Sounds great! The King of the Pirates wouldn't have anything less than the best!" Nix smiled.

"Seems like I should deticate myself to something as well, besides finding a way home that is."

"Big talker," Zoro told Luffy, smirking. "From this point on, I don't care if I'm a criminal or not. I will spread the name Zoro throughout the world!"

"What are you all standing around for?" Morgan bellowed, making the marines cower in fear. "Kill all four of them!"

"You might wanna duck!" Luffy said, pulling his leg back. Zoro's eyes widened as he ducked alongside Nix, who pulled her hat off to keep it out of the crossfire. "Gum Gum . . . **WHIP**!" He brought his leg forward in a sweeping motion and swept all of the marines off their feet, sending them to the ground.

"Strike!" Nix shouted, refering to bowling.

"Wanna tell me what you are?" Zoro asked.

"I'm just a guy who ate the Gum Gum Fruit." Luffy said, swinging his leg back and forth.

"What's a Gum Gum Fruit?" Zoro asked around the sword in his mouth.

"A rubber man?" one of the beaten marines asked.

"Captain, we don't stand a chance against them." another one said.

"Yeah! We couldn't even deal with Zoro alone! They're insane!"

The pirates (Luffy, Nix, and Zoro) turned to face Morgan as he ordered the men to shoot themselves for their weakness. As Zoro got ready to attack, Luffy ran around him, slamming a fist into Morgan's chest. Introductions were made, blows were exchanged, and Luffy continued to introduce his fist to Morgan's face while Hellmepo arrived.

"Stop right there! Look at what I got!" he yelled, pointing a gun at Coby's head. Nix moved silently, walking behind the blond and placing her fan near the base of his neck, ready to attack him if he made a wrong move. Luffy ignored him and continued to beat Hellmepo's father to a pulp. "Are you stupid or something? I said stop! If you would pay attention to me you'd see that I have a hostage!"

"You won't use that gun," Nix said, smirking. Hellmepo yelped and turned to face her. "You know, guns are made for actions, not threats." Luffy, who had been standing up, looked at her in surprise. Was it possible the girl knew Shanks and his crew? Luffy grinned at the terrified Coby and the ready-to-attack Nix.

Coby stopped shaking for a moment then yelled out, determined to die for his dream.

"Luffy, listen! Don't let anything that happens to me stop you! Even if I die!"

"Of course," Luffy laughed. "You hear that? Coby's ready to die by your hand!"

"Gum Gum . . . **PISTOL**!" Zoro, Nix and Luffy all moved at once. Nix grabbed Coby's legs and yanked him out from under Hellmepo's arm as Luffy rocketed his arm forward, slamming Hellmepo in the face. While Luffy was vulnerable, Zoro leapt at Morgan, slashing him across the chest and preventing the attack from reaching Luffy. The young captain grinned appreciatively. "Nice one!"

Behind him, Morgan fell back, thudding against the ground as Zoro stood over him.

"Just doing my job," Zoro grinned. "Captain." Nix fluttered around Coby anxiously, motherly intincts kicking in, clucking like a ruffled chicken.

"Are you alright? You're not hurt are you? Do you need something to eat? Pixel! Do me a favor and set Hellmepo's feet on fire!" Pixel obliged happily.

The blond leapt to his feet and ran inside, screaming for water. All around them, marines were cheering from Morgan's defeat while Zoro collapsed from hunger. Nix laughed and adjusted her hat, helping Luffy pick the swordsman up.

"Put him in here first," she told him, opening the locket. "He'll need a quick shower before going anywhere with me!"

* * *

"Woo! I am stuffed!" Zoro laughed, sitting back. "Having not eaten for three weeks, I was ready to knaw through my boot straps!" Rica, her mother, and Coby laughed from their place at the bar. Nix smiled and continued to feed her Pokemon.

"I can't believe you're finished," Luffy sniffed, muching on some meat. "Lightweight."

"How the hell can you have a bigger appetite than someone's who's starved for three weeks?" Zoro asked, pointing at the pile of plates stacked up in front of Luffy.

"He's got a rubber stomach!" Nix laughed, standing up and picking Sweet-Pea up off the floor and setting him on the counter.

Her wallet fell out of her pocket, a slip of paper falling out. Luffy picked it up and stared at the picture for a moment.

"Hey Nix," the natural red head looked up at him, feeding a chopped carrot to Sweet-Pea. "Who's this?" Nix smiled.

"The blond woman is my mother, and the guys are my brother, Ciro, and my dad." Luffy stared at her.

"You mean Shanks has a daughter?" Nix frowned at him.

"Huh?" Luffy pointed at the red haired man in the photo.

"That's Shanks," he handed her the picture. It was indeed Shanks, a younger and clean-shaved version of the man, but him none the less.

"I -" she said, surprised. "Never realized that."

"That's cool!" Luffy said, grinning at her. Nix smiled back weakly.

"So, how many crew members do you have?" Zoro asked Luffy.

"Huh?" the captain said, looking at him blankly.

"You said you were getting people to join your crew. How many people do you have?"

"Counting me and Nix?" Luffy said. "Two. Three now that we have you."

"Vulpix!" Pixel said, pawing Luffy's leg.

"Oops! Sorry. Make that four." Nix smiled, recovering from the shock of finding out who her father was.

"So we're all that amounts to a pirate crew?" Zoro asked, disbelief evident in his tone.

"Why not? We're a couple of strong guys." Luffy said, shrugging.

"And a girl," Nix added.

"That too."

"At least tell me you have a ship." Zoro asked.

"Sure do!" Luffy said, pointing his fork at the rowboat that was visible from the window.

"We'll get a much bigger one soon, don't worry." Nix said, smiling mysterously.

"I can't believe I got myself suckered into this." Zoro sighed, veins pulsing in his head.

Rica inquired as to where they were going, which Luffy said was the Grandline. Coby explained the dangers of the place and warned Luffy about it.

"They probably didn't know what they were getting into and died or just didn't want to come back. If you know what lies ahead, the Grandline can be a pirate's paradise!" Nix said, grinning.

Luffy and Coby had a short conversation before the marines arrived. They allowed the crew to leave, but they had to leave immediately. The townspeople protested, but Luffy and Nix stood, ready to leave.

"Thanks for everything," Nix told Rica's mother as she took a bag of food for Pixel and Sweet-Pea. "Bye everyone!" Nix walked out, ignoring the marines questions, but turned back in time to see Coby slug Luffy. The seventeen year old smirked and began to beat the crap out of Coby. Zoro went in and grabbed Luffy's collar, stopping him from hurting him even more.

Nix smiled and continued on to the boat.

"That act you put on back there was pretty thin," Zoro told Luffy, who just laughed. "They probably saw right through it."

"Coby can get through it," Nix said dismissively, carrying Sweet-Pea in her arms like Misty did with her own Togepi.

"Luffy!" Coby shouted, coming up to them as they untied the ropes. "Thank you! You've done more for me than anyone ever has!" He saluted them.

"I've never heard of a marine saluting a pirate before." Zoro said, amused. "That's one for the history books."

As they set off, calling their good-byes, the rest of the Marines came up behind Coby, Rica, and her mother, saluting the first of the Straw Hat pirates.

* * *

"I get the feeling some interesting adventures are gonna happen now." Zoro said. Nix adusted her tophat.

"You've no idea," Nix laughed.

* * *

A/N:

- **Magic126** - thanks for Story Alerting and Favoriting!  
- **hanonmm** - thanks for Favoriting!  
- **ichigo1508** - thanks for the Review! Glad you liked it! :)


	4. Buggy! Mohji vs Nix!

**Chapter Four**  
**In Which Nix Gets Angry**  
**Aka: A Terrifying Mysterious Power! Captain Buggy, the Clown Pirate.**  
**Aka: Desperate Situation! Beast Tamer Mohji vs. Nix.**

* * *

_"Ordinary riches can be stolen, real riches cannot. In your soul are infinitely precious things that cannot be taken from you."_

-Oscar Wilde

* * *

[**Part One**]

Nix walked through the giant closet, Steven the floating skull-n'-arm following after her.

"Hey, there's an Ouran Academy boys' uniform," she said, pulling the light blue suit off a rack. "That's definetaly going on the list." She put it back and scribbled the title on her clipboard alongside several other named outfits.

So far, she had found a Naruto jumpsuit, Mad Hatter 2010 attire, and a Sailor Moon cosplay amoung many namebrand and designer clothes. At the moment, she wore a dark green halter top and a pair of cargo pants. Her black combat boots came up to her knees and her black gloves fit comfortably on her hands.

Her hat apparently changed to fit the color of her attire, the ribbon having changed to an emerald green color.

She had kept to keeping the cards Steve had given her on her first day in the anime, in her pocket, one tucked inside each glove while two were placed behind the ribbon of her hat, providing a bit of decoration to the already ridiculous thing. She kept these cards on her because they tended to blow up when they were thrown, providing her with a very Gambit-like means of weapons. She found this out when she tossed one to Luffy after he asked for it. He was a bit put out by the explosion, but he thought it cool enough to let it slide.

At the moment, the girl was attempting to catalouge her Pocket Locket. Pixel was sitting aboard deck with the boys, while Sweet-Pea ran around the closet with Nix, the girl having not trusted them enough to watch over the hyperactive baby as she called him.

"Togepriiii!" he trilled, darting behind a long ballgown and playing peek-a-boo with his trainer. Nix smiled at the Pokemon.

"I see you," she said, kneeling so she could tickle him.

"Hey, Nix!" she heard Luffy call, his voice echoing around the room. "Are you listening?"

"Yup, you were talking about Ben Beckman taking out the mountain bandits that tried to take out the Red-Haired pirates after their leader, who kidnapped you, ordered them to do so."

"Awesome! You are listening!"

"Continue!" she called, turning back to her clipboard.

Earlier, Luffy's hat had almost been blown away. After he got it back, he began telling them the story of how he ate the Gum Gum Fruit and got his hat.

"You know!" she shouted, catching their attention. "I always wondered what happened to his arm. One day, he just came home without it." Nix grinned remembering it. (_"You should really remember your limbs," her mother said seriously. "If that wound comes open and stains my carpet, you're sleeping on the couch, buddy._) Luffy's lips twitched, torn by amusement and guilt.

"Hey, look. A bird." Zoro said. Nix stuck her head out and saw the pink bird they were staring at.

"I know!" Luffy shouted, disturbing Pixel from his nap atop the captain's head. "Let's eat it!"

"How do you plan on getting it down here?" Nix asked, raising an eyebrow. "'Hey Mister Bird, come down here! I wanna eat you!' Yeah, that should work." Luffy grinned at her.

"Gum Gum -" he said, arms stretching to the sky. Pixel watched them curiously, still sitting on Luffy's head. "ROCKET!" Luffy launched himself up, Pixel falling off his head and clinging to his shoulders in terror. Nix's eyes widened as the giant bird carried them off.

"AAAAAAAHHHH!" Luffy yelled. "HELP!"

"YOU MORON!" Zoro roared. "What the hell's going on now?" Nix grabbed and oar and helped him row.

"Wait! Man overboard!" a voice called. Nix and Zoro turned to find the three pirates Nami had tricked dead ahead in the water.

"I can't believe we're finding shipwreckers at a time like this!" Nix snapped, stealing Zoro's line.

"We can't stop!" Zoro told them. "You'll just have to grab on!"

One boat nabbing atempt later, and an angry Nix sat beside an irritated Zoro while the three other pirates rowed the boat for them. Nix tuned out their conversation and focused on looking for land.

Her Vulpix was missing and she was pissed.

* * *

Meanwhile, Luffy and the said Vulpix were being blasted out of the air by a Buggy Ball.

"Ahhhh!" Luffy shouted as he fell from the sky, Pixel clinging to him as he wailed his lungs out.

"Piiiiiiix!"

With a **_bam!_** the two hit the ground, creating a huge cloud of dust. As it cleared, Luffy sat up, anjusting his hat while Pixel staggered around drunkenly, his eyes swirls.

"At least we're alive." he said, standing up. "And what just happened to me, was awesome."

"Oh hey boss," Nami said, meeting Luffy for the first time as he complained of hunger. "Thanks for coming to save me!" Nami smiled at him, clasping her hands at her throat.

"Who are you?" the clueless captain asked. The three Buggy Pirates behind them growled.

"They're all yours now boss! Have fun!" Luffy blinked after her while she ran off. Pixel, noting the presence of irritation, turned to see the three very annoyed men. He looked at them with wide eyes before doing what any sensible person -er, animal- would do.

He took off running.

* * *

Panting, the little fox Pokemon collasped, trying to catch his breath. He looked around with dazed brown eyes at his surroundings. A small white dog stared at him. Pixel stared back.

"Hi," he crooned, swishing his tail in a friendly manner.

"Hello," the dog barked, wagging its tail slightly. "Who and what are you?" Pixel held his head up proudly.

"I am Pixel, a Pokemon! Fire and Fox type to be exact." If Pokemon could grin, that's what he would be doing. "I am the great Kenna D. Nix's Vulpix!" The dog tipped his head to the side.

"I've never heard of a Pokemon before." the dog blinked at him. "Are you from the Grandline?" Pixel sweatdropped.

Nix had told him about her world. In her conversation, he found out that he and Sweet-Pea were from another world as well. Pixel decided to copy his master and lie about his orgins.

"Yup!" he chirped cheerfully, sweating nervously. He tried to change the subject. "So, who are you?"

"My name is Shu-Shu."

* * *

Nix blinked as they watched a piece of the town blown apart.

"That was one heck of an explosion," Zoro said, watching it.

"You can say that again," she said, frowning.

"It looked like it was one of the captain's beloved Buggy Balls,"

"Must be compensating for something," Nix said, walking into town as Zoro snorted.

"Buggy Balls?"

* * *

Pixel yelped as an explosion destroyed buildings not too far from where he and Shu-Shu sat in front of a pet shop.

"What was that?" he yelped. Shu-Shu just watched impassively.

"The pirate Buggy the Clown has taken over our town recently." he growled lowly. "Ever since then, he's done nothing but celebrate his victory over driving the people out.

I'm not leaving, not when the shop is in danger." Pixel looked at his new friend. He stood, shaking his coat lean of the dust, and sat neck to Shu-Shu, making the dog look at him in surprise.

A doggish smile spread across his face before returning to his normal blank demeanor.

* * *

"What do you wanna bet Luffy's the cause of that?" Nix sighed, peering at the top of the building where excited shouts could be heard.

Zoro sighed and began to climb up rapidly, Nix following a bit slower. Above, there were clangs, followed by a pained yell. The two pirates picked up the pace, Zoro

reached the top in time to save Nami from being sliced up. As he threw them back, Nix went to stand by Luffy, who was in a cage.

"Zoro!" Luffy laughed. "Nix."

"Hey there, captain." Nix smiled at the younger boy.

"You hurt?" the swordsman asked, glancing over his shoulder at Nami. "I said, are you hurt?"

"N-no, I'm fine I think." she said weakly staring at him.

"Phew," Luffy said, relaxing. "What a relief. I'm glad you found us. Now hurry up and get me out of this cage!"

"How do you keep getting yourself in these situations?" Zoro asked, walking towards them. "First a bird carries you off, then we find you in a cage."

"It's an interesting story actually," Luffy said, smiling.

"Ah, you can tell us _**after**_ we get you free," Nix said, pulling out a hairpin as she knealt before the lock. "Give me a minute."

Behind them, the pirates and Nami were in awe of Zoro, Buggy attempting to fight them as Nix ignored them, trying to free Luffy.

"You can pick locks?" Luffy asked, taking his eyes off the green haired man for a moment.

"Nope!" she said cheerfully, turning to Nami. "Oi! Tangerine!" Nami jumped and stared at her, Zoro cutting Buggy down in the mean time. "Come here!"

As she made her way over to them, Buggy's hand stabbed Zoro from behind. Nix gasped and Nami yelped at they watched him fall to his knees.

"Zoro!" Luffy shouted.

Nix scowled as Buggy declared he was a Chop Chop man. She stood and readjusted her hat, pulling out her fan in anticipation of a fight.

"He's a Chop Chop man?" Luffy asked. "That's pretty freaky."

"Oh, be quiet Gum Gum boy." Nix snorted, taking a fighting stance. She pushed one leg out behind her, following it with the opposite arm as she held the fan up in front of her face.

The Buggy pirates cheered their captain on as Luffy seethed with anger when he gloated.

"Stabbing him in the back was a cheap move you Big Nose!" Everyone froze, staring at Luffy.

"Who's got a big nose?" Buggy shouted, tossing his knife at Luffy's head.

"Buggy." Luffy laughed, breaking the knife with his teeth. "I'm gonna kick your ass as soon as I get outta here!"

"You? Kick my ass?" Buggy laughed obnoxiously. "You'd better do it soon because you'll all going to be dead!" The boy just laughed.

"I refuse to die!" Luffy shouted. "Zoro! Get up!"

"What?" the man asked, staring at the captain. After a moment, he smirked, getting the message.

_**Knock. Knock.**_

"I got ya," he said.

Buggy jumped at them, causing them to cross blades for a moment as Nix opened the locket. Steven deposited an odd object in her hand, something that made the natural crimson head grin evily.

"Perfect," she purred, setting it down and pushing it towards the pirates while everyone was distracted by the fight.

The Decoy Detonator waddled over to the Buggy Pirates, lodging itself deep within the crowd as Zoro slipped past Buggy, Nix helping him to flip the cannon. Nami quickly ran over to the fuse, stricking a match and lighting it.

The Decoy went off at the same time as the cannon, leaving the crew waiting for the dust to clear.

* * *

[**Part Two**]

Before the smoke could clear, Zoro had hefted the cage onto his back and jumped over the side of the building with some effort.

"I guess, even a lowly pirate can save their friend." Nami murmered, making Nix smile as she walked away. The magician followed after her friends idly, blinking in surprise as she found Luffy sitting in front of a little dog, Pixel sitting beside it.

"I wonder if it's dead," Luffy said, poking it. The dog clamped on to his face, making Luffy fall over. Zoro collapsed after yelling at him.

As Nix walked over, Luffy began strangling poor Shu-Shu for eating the key Nami stole for him. She smiled as Mayor Boodle arrived on the scene, pulling her locket off and climbing in. As she disappeared, the locket zoomed through the air and landed on Zoro's lap, obviously trusting him to take care of it while the resident magician was occupied. The swordsman stared at it for a moment, then looped it around his neck.

Zoro was used to this, it happening every night, or when Nix decided to make a spontainious trip into the locket. At first, it annoyed him, but after realizing it just kept coming back like a boomerang, he settled on watching over the first mate while she was vulnerable.

Nix walked down the hall, opening the blue door to the bathroom. She grinned as she opened the cabinet, pulling out a well-equiped first aid kit. She nodded at Steven, who held the 'door' open for her, and climbed out, miracuously managing /not/ to crush Zoro as he crashed in Boodle's house.

A tick went off at her temple when her hips yet _**again**_ got caught at the locket's mouth.

"Is this going to happen," she growled, twitching irritably. "EVERY FREAKING TIME?"

Zoro snorted and opened his eyes, staring blearily at the girl who was leaning over him, giving her a clear view of her clevage.

"Nix," he said, turning pink as a trickle of blood ran out of one of his nostrils.

The natural redhead looked at him curiously, then at his line of sight.

"Eeep!" she squeaked, falling out of the locket and onto the floor, her face resembling a tomato.

"What were you doing in there?" Zoro groaned, attempting to sit up. Nix stood rapidly and gently pushed him back, using his lack of strength to do so.

"Getting this." she held up the first-aid kit and waved it a bit. "That's a nasty wound. It'll need /some/ medical attention."

"How do you know what to do?" Zoro asked, grunting as he pulled his shirt off.

"High school and rowdy band groupies. They are **_not_** nice when they're on sugar rushes." she said solemnly, shuddering slightly.

"You were in a band?" the man asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I was the drummer," Nix said, smiling faintly. "Our name was Raitokyatcha. Light Catchers." she added seeing his blank look. Nix poured peroxodixe over the wound before stitching it up. Zoro grunted, gritting his teeth. "Keep talking, it'll help." she ordered.

"We're you any good?"

"Enough to get a few gigs," she said, shrugging as she began wrapping gauze around his stomach. "Alright," she said, helping him slip the shirt over his head. "Get some sleep."

"Thanks," he said, laying back and closing his eyes tiredly. Nix smiled and picked up her locket, slipping it on and closing it as she went down the stairs. However, she failed to notice the little PokeBall fall out and bounce down the steps, landing on the button.

"Togepri?" Sweet-Pea asked, blinking in the sudden sunlight. He shook himself and tottered down an alley.

"Pix!" Pixel yelped, running after him.

"What's going on?" Nix asked, running after him.

* * *

"Don't run off like that," Nix chided gently, holding a chirping Sweet-Pea in her arms as Pixel rode on her head. Nix smiled at the spikeball Pokemon and stepped out of the alley, staggering back as a wave of heat hit her face.

Green eyes widened as she found the Pet Shop in flames, Shu-Shu sitting in front of it, howling miserably.

Pixel leapt off her head and ran over to the dog, nudging him anxiously.

"It's gone!" Shu-Shu howled, sorrow coming off him in waves. "The lion and the bear-man destroyed everything! Everything I worked so hard to protect! Everything he lived for!"

Luffy approached them, watching the flames with wide eyes.

"Luffy," Nix said, hat hiding her eyes. "Permisson to search out Mohji and kick his ass?" Luffy looked at her.

"Sure," she nodded, handing him Sweet-Pea. The little Pokemon looked at her sadly, cooeing as Luffy held it like Nix would.

"Let's go, Pixel."

* * *

Nix stood in the center of the road, watching as Mohji and Richie approached. Pixel sat by her feet, tail lashing angrily. Master and Pokemon watched with cold eyes, their position causing the lion and his tamer to stop.

"What do you want?" the white haired man asked, staring at her.

"You destroyed something very prescious," she said, eyes shadowed, voice dangerous. "I'm simply here to repay the deed."

Mohji cringed at the venom in her voice, surprised someone could sound so angry while being calm at the same time.

"Richie!" he shouted, pointing at her. "Smash her head into the ground!"

"Now," she said quietly. Pixel stood, jumping at Mohji.

The Beast Tamer cried out in shock, falling off the large lion and hit the ground. Richie, however, kept coming. At the last second, Nix raised a hand and caught him by the nose.

"How?" Mohji shouted. Pixel growled at him, small flames shoting out between his bared teeth. The man gulped and shut his mouth, watching anxiously as Nix held Richie in place.

"Heh," she smirked, raising her head a little, showing deadly eyes. Richie howled and tried to break free of her grip, attempting to rip his nose away from the college student. Nix held on to him with ease, flexing her fingers slightly as she grew more accustomed to the black gloves on her hands.

On her way to confront the Buggy Pirate, Steven had threw a pair of gloves at her. However, these were no ordinary gloves. They were a pair of Chakra enhancing gloves like the pair Sakura owned in Naruto Shippuden. They were black, fingerless and wrapping around her wrist, the kanji for pain on the right (the one she was holding Richie with) while the other read mercy. But Nix didn't seem to be showing mercy any time soon.

Nix tightened her grip, making the lion scream in pain and she picked him up, tossing him in the general direction of Buggy's base.

Mohji whimpered as she approached him. Surely a girl like that couldn't _**possibly**_ take out a giant lion so easily. And with one move!

Nix stood over him, staring him down with an unreadable expression.

"Get up," she commanded, kicking at him slightly. Mohji scrambled to his feet, not given an opportunity for escape as Nix grabbed his collar and began to drag him back to the pet shop.

Pixel walked over to the abandoned box of dog food and picked it up, following after them.

* * *

"Apologize!" she snapped, throwing the man to the ground at Shu-Shu's feet. "Now!"

"I'm sorry," yelped, covering his face.

"Not to me," she snapped, glaring at him. Mohji looked at her fearfully before turning to the little dog.

"I'm sorry mutt!"

"Not nice enough!" she snarled, stepping on his rib cage.

"I'm sorry for destroying your shop!" he practically wailed.

"Good boy," Nix growled, picking him up once more and tossing him the same way she had done with Richie.

"That was awesome!" Luffy laughed. Nix smiled at him.

"Hey, Tangerine." Nami looked at her with wide eyes, surprised that a pirate would go so far as to make someone apologize to a dog. "Put me in the locket when I crash, kay?"

With that, Nix collapsed into an exhausted pile.

* * *

A/N: Ah the Buggy Arc, then it's on to Syrup Island and then to the Baratie! We're ready to start with the Arlong Park Arc, but it's gonna have to wait. -sigh-

[Part One]  
What did you think about Pixel's screentime? The Decoy Detonator is a Weasley Wizarding Wheezes product (Harry Potter), great for distractions.

[Part Two}  
We know very little about medicine, so bear with us, please. Mah, Nix will **_not_** be ridiculously strong. She simply knows how to play her strengths and weaknesses to their full advantage. This'll become more evident as the story progresses. She's a bit sadistic, hmm, wonder why that is? -grins-

- **ichigo1508** - thanks for Favoriting and Reviewing! Yes, the locket _does_ come in handy. :)  
- **xXxDragonxPhoenixXx** - thanks for Story Alerting!


	5. The Honorable Liar!

Wooh! Sorry this is so late! It's been storming around here and Aro's been in the hospital for a while so we've had some problems with updating.

* * *

**Chapter Five**  
**In Which Nix Wakes Up**  
**Aka: The Honorable Liar? Captain Usopp!**

* * *

_"Fiction is the truth inside the lie."_  
- Steven King

* * *

Nix was warm.

That was the first thing she took note of in her sleepy daze.

Warmth and a rising and falling motion.

She smiled happily, snuggling into her pillow contently. The pillow grunted as she held it tighter.

Wait, grunted?

Nix's eyes flew open and landed on a pair of silverish eyes, glazed with pain. She released Zoro and fell backwards off the bed.

"You're usually more coordinated," Zoro groaned, sitting up.

"W-where are we?" she stammered, trying in vain not to look at the swordsman.

"Your locket," he said, popping his neck. His eyes roamed over it. "Very dark."

"I like it," Nix said, shrugging. She looked down at her outfit, which was smudged with dirt, sweat and Zoro's blood. "I need a shower." She stood, wincing at the ache in her arms, and headed down the hall, leaving Zoro to explore.

* * *

After a quick shower and a change of clothes, Nix stood before Zoro, staring him down stubbornly.

"Yes,"

"I don't need it."

"Yes, you **_do_**."

"No."

"You're taking that shower even if it kills you!" she exclaimed, looking mournfully at her now bloody sheets. "You're destroying my house!" she wailed, pulling on her hair.

"Fine, just shut up!" Zoro grumbled. "I'm getting a headache." Nix smirked.

"Great, the bathroom's the blue door down the hall. You'll find a change of clothes waiting for you there."

"You planned this!" Zoro asked, eye twitching.

"Maybe~!" she grinned.

"Damn manipulative woman." he mumbled, moving past her. Nix laughed and turned to examine herself in her mirror.

A dark red shirt hung off one of her shoulders, a large glittering skull and crossbones on the front. Her black pants matched her black converse. The chakra gloves from earlier were still on her hands, ready for action. Her hat's ribbon was now a blood red. A pair of earrings made from some dice, hung from her ears.

"Hey, Zoro!" she called, throwing the locket door open. "Take a rest and try not to bleed on anything or else you're confined to the couch!"

"Yeah," she heard him shout back, accompanied by the sound of the shower stopping. Nix blinked and a trickle of blood ran from her nose as he walked out in a towel.

"I'll be going then," she muttered, taking her eyes off his abs. She hurriedly stuck her head out of the locket.

"You're awake!" Nami exclaimed.

"Hey, Tangerine!" she said cheerfully.

"You slept through it!" Luffy laughed, looking down at her. He pulled the locket off and held it out in front of him. "After you collapsed, the mayor went crazy and took off after Buggy! Then we went after him and this weird acrobat guy tried to fight Zoro, but he lost big time! After Zoro went to sleep, we put him in your room with you. Then, Buggy tore up my hat and started talking about how much he hated Shanks! He hates him for saving his life, I think. Anyways, then I kicked Buggy's ass, but he split up into all these little parts and went after Nami, cuz she was stealing his treasure, but I stopped him and we started fighting again. Then, when he tried to pull himself together, Nami tied all of his extra pieces up! After that, I kicked him right over the island!"

"Then the villagers showed up," Nami sighed as Nix climbed out. Zoro followed her, wearing a black T-shirt and a pair of jeans. Nix mentally drooled at the sight of him. It wasn't her fault she had a little fangirlish crush on him (ooh, foreshadowing! -grins-). "They chased us out. The mayor woke up before we could get completely away. He thanked us as we were sailing off. Strawboy here forgot my treasure on the docks." She glared at Luffy when she said the last part.

"Where'd the apples come from?" Nix asked, biting into one happily. She loved apples, they were her favorite fruit.

"They were below deck on my ship," Nami said, pointing at the little cabin on the boat she stole from the Buggy pirates.

"Cool," One anime question down, several more to go.

"So what are we doing now?" she asked, looking at Luffy curiously. The young captain looked at her, Pixel sitting in his usual spot atop his hat-clad head.

"We're going to Syrup Island. There's something I want to get there." Nix raised an eyebrow, smiling slightly.

"Should be interesting." Luffy grinned.

"That's what I'm hoping for!"

* * *

As the crew landed on the shore, Nix and Luffy jumped out, followed by everyone else. The magician stretched happily, grinning at Pixel who sat at her feet.

"It feels great to be on land again!" she laughed, tipping her head back. Zoro stretched, agreeing with her while Luffy asked Nami about where they could find meat, then Zoro stiffened, reaching for one of his swords.

"Careful," he said, eyes scanning the tree line. "We're being watched.

"By who?" Luffy asked excitably. "Do they have meat?"

"Look out!" Zoro shouted. Whistles rang through the air as small projectiles were shot at them. Nix did the smart thing and hid behind Zoro, her fan raised to protect her face. Pixel stood near Luffy jumping nimbly to avoid Usopp's aim. Sweet-Pea was being held by Nami, who hid behind one of the boats. Small Jolly Rogers began to go up in the bushes along the cliffs, and Usopp finally made his apperance.

"That's so cool!" Luffy shouted, waving his arms excitedly.

"Are we supposed to be impressed?" Nami asked scornfully.

"Ahahahahaha," Usopp laughed, towering over them from his place on the cliff top. Nix stepped out from behind Zoro, exchanging a look with Luffy as the captain realized who he was. "I am Usopp! Leader of the great nation of pirates that live on this island. You stand before a living legend, the most revered pirate to ever live! I am the great captain Usopp."

"And here I was, thinking that Gol Roger was the most revered pirate to ever live." Nix said sarcastically, mischevious light dancing in her green eyes. Usopp continued, ignoring her.

"Surely you knew that attempting an attack on this village would mean certain doom! My army of eigthy-million super bad pirates soldiers could squash you like bugs!"

"Must be crowded," Nix commented. "What with this being such a small island and so many people, not to mention the civilians that live here too."

"Awessooooooooomeeee!" Luffy shouted. Zoro looked at him strangely.

"You expect us to believe that?" Nami called, making Usopp jump.

"Oh no! She knew I was lying!"

"Actually," Nix said, smiling pleasantly. "You just told her that, she was just asking a question."

"How could I have been so dumb?" Usopp yelled, doing a little wiggle dance. "I practically told her I was lying! I'm such an idiot. So stupid." Nami just stared awkwardly.

"What?" Luffy exclaimed, looking towards the girls. "He was lying?"

"Curse you crafty women!" Usopp shouted. "But no matter! Eighty-million might have been an exaggeration, but I have a great many men under my command!"

"My guess is three," Nami and Nix chorused, smirking at the wannabe captain. In the bushes, Carrot, Onion, and Pepper shouted in terror, taking off towards the village.

"AH!" They shouted, disappearing. "They knoow!"

"Hey! Where're you going?" Usopp shouted, eyes bugging out of his head. "Come baaack!" He turned to face the crew nervously.

"A pirate using a slingshot," Nami said, picking up one of Usopp's 'bullets'. She blew the sand off of it and looked at it curiously. "Now I've seen it all."

"Ever been to the Grand Line?" Nix asked. Nami shook her head. "Then you've seen nothing yet."

"That's pretty cool," Luffy laughed. Usopp growled and pulled out a loaded slingshot, aiming it at the small crew.

"Shut your mouth," he said, glaring at them. Nix personally thought it was very brave of him to even aim at a pirate. "I'm a proud man and I won't stand for it! This is your last warning. You'll get to see why they call me Proud Usopp, and not, Pushover Usopp. You've already seen how good I am with this thing, so you know I can rival anyone with a pistol."

Luffy pushed his hat down low in his head, no longer laughing. Nix tipped her head down, the shadow from her own hat hiding her face and smile. She pulled out a charged card, ready to demonstrate, not that she would have to.

"Now that you've drawn your pistol," Luffy said, beginning to quote Shanks, much like Nix had done with Hellmepo. "Are you willing, to use it?" Zoro, seeing what Luffy was trying to do, smirked and slid one of his swords slightly out of its sheath.

"Guns aren't for threats," Nix said, her voice low and dangerous. Inside, she was trying desperately not to laugh, knowing Usopp was shaking in fear by now. "They're for actions."

"Are you willing to risk your life?" Luffy finished, looking up at him through his dark hair. Zoro chuckled.

"I can assure you," he called. "We're real pirates, so consider your next move carefully." Usopp maintained his aim for a few moments, then dropped the slingshot, sinking to his knees.

"Real pirates have a lot more puch behind the words because they can actually back it up," he said reverently. "That's so cool." Luffy stared up at him for a moment, expression blank, then he grinned. Nix joined Zoro and Luffy in their laughter, grinning up at the young sharpshooter.

"I stole that," Luffy said. "I stole those words from Red-Haired Shanks, a pirate I know."

"What?" Ussop gasped. "You know Red-Haired Shanks?"

"He's my dad," Nix said, smiling serenly.

"I know your dad too," Luffy continued. "His name's Yasopp, right?" Usopp gave a cry of delight, sliding off the cliff to land before them.

"You're right," Usopp said, slightly surprised. "My old man's name is Yasopp. But, uh, how in the world do you know him?"

Nix grinned, knowing a good meal would come during the explanation.

* * *

A few minutes later, the crew and Usopp sat in a small resturant called Meshi, happily eating their lunch. Nix fed Sweet-Pea small bits of stewed potatos and carrots while Pixel tried to eat a steak that was almost as long as him. Nix smiled, listening idly to the conversation around their table.

"This is good." Usopp said, starting up a conversation with Luffy about Yasopp. Nix smiled as Luffy recounted the days when Yaopp was in the village, showing off his skills and sticking beer mugs on his head. Vaguely, she wondered how he got the glass off of his head.

"Maybe you can help us," Nami said after Usopp told Luffy he was proud of his father. "Do you know anyone who can provide us with a decent ship? Or anyone who can sail for that matter?"

"Well," Usopp sighed, looking away. "It's a pretty small village. I just don't think we can help you." Zoro exchanged a look with an amused Nix, who had a mischevious twinkling in her emerald eyes.

"What about that house on the hill? Generally there should be someone there with resources." Usopp froze as the swordsman and magician looked out the window at it.

"Hey," Nami said, smiling at the sharpshooter as she clasped her hands beneath her chin. "Do you know them Usopp? With all that money, surely they can help us get a ship!"

"You stay away from there," Usopp snapped, looking irritated. He immediately regretted it seeing the surprised expressions of the crew. Well, Nix's was more because Sweet-Pea began to roll down the table, but she fixed that by quickly picking him up. "Ah!" Usopp said awkwardly. "I just remembered something I really need to do. Uh, everybody knows me at this place, so, stay and eat as much as you want. Well, uh, gotta go!" He stood up and grabbed his back, running out of Meshi and towards Kaya's mansion.

"Why was he in such a hurry to get out of here?" Nami wondered. Luffy shrugged and bit into an apple. Nix's eyes drifted to the window, where she saw Usopp running up the hill. If only he knew what was going to happen.

"Togeprrrriiii!" Sweet-Pea trilled, wobbling around on the table. He fell into Zoro's lap with a squeak, making the moss haired man jump in surprise.

"What the - What are you doing?" he asked, holding the baby Pokemon up in front of his face.

"Prriii!" he trilled, smiling at the swordsman. Luffy grinned took a drink of his apple juice, a habit that stuck with him because of Nix's dad.

"Haha," she said, propping her head up on her palm. "That's cute, Zoro." A slight pink tinge entered his cheeks as he handed her Sweet-Pea.

"Shut up," he grumbled. Nix and Nami exchanged an amused look but, before they could tease him further, the doors of the resteraunt slammed open and three little boys rushed into, wooden swords raised.

"The Usopp Pirates have arrived!" they shouted.

"Who are these kids?" Nami asked, turning to look at them.

"Captain Usopp is gone," Carrot said as they froze up.

"Did they," Onion asked nervously, "eat him?

"'Fess up you filthy pirates!" Pepper shouted, running over to them. Nix could've awed at the cuteness of the three. "What have you done with our beloved captain. Pixel took that moment to rip off a chunk of meat and swallow it, looking directly at the play-crew.

"Ah," Luffy sighed, ignoring them. "That meat sure was good." He rubbed his stomach, making a hysterical thought run through Nix's mind. Luffy seriously looked pregnant. Nix reached over and poked his belly.

"What meat?" Carrot asked as he and Onion grabbed onto Pepper.

"These pirates are canibals!"

Nami giggled as she realized what they were doing. Zoro copied Nix's stance and looked at the boys, the air around him darkening as he grinned, looking rather shark-like (Oda-sensei said Zoro looks like a shark, so we put that in).

"What have you done, you savages?" Pepper asked, quaking in fear.

"If you're looking for your captain," Nix began, smirking.

"We ate him." Zoro finished. The boys screamed, eyes bugging out of their heads as they turned to the nearest person: Nami.

"AH! CANNIBALS!"

"WHAT ARE YOU PUNKS LOOKING AT ME FOR?" she shouted, glaring at them. Nix and the guys burst out laughing, Pixel rolling around on his back while Sweet-Pea looked on, smiling and confused.

"You just had to go and say something stupid, didn't you!" Nami snapped, put out by the fact they called her a cannibal.

* * *

A few minutes later after the Usopp pirates were convinced the Straw Hats weren't cannibals and Pixel wouldn't be snacking on them any time soon, they stood outside the gates of Kaya's mansion, searching for Usopp.

While the others listened to the three boys, Nix walked over to where Usopp usually entered and climbed through the gap he left.

"He should really hide this better." she sighed, picking up Sweet-Pea. Pixel had stayed with Luffy and the others, riding on the captain's head like always. She walked up to the base of the tree, a smile on her face. "Hello, Usopp!" she called.

"Prrii!" Sweet-Pea trilled, waving his arms at the long-nosed boy, who froze up.

"Nix!" he exclaimed, looking shocked. "How did you get here?"

"Same way you did." she said, nodding at Kaya. "Who's your friend?"

"I'm Kaya," the blond said, looking curious. "Who are you?"

"I'm Kenna D. Nix," the red head said, giving an elegant bow, even taking her hat off. "My father sailed with Usopp, so I've heard a bit about him and decided to come meet him." she lied smoothly, completely convincing Kaya. "The rest of the crew I'm on is here and want to meet you, so please, don't be surprised if they show up suddenly." The Straw Hat Pirates and the Usopp Pirates crashed into the ground behind her. "Like that.

"That worked well," Luffy rasped.

"Yeah, real well." Nami snapped sarcastically.

"My goodness!" Kaya exclaimed. "Are you okay?"

"Don't worry about them," Nix told her before Usopp could speak and embarrass himself. "Though if Zoro opened that wound again, I'm going to hurt him." she glared at the swordsman to emphasize her point. Luffy stood adjusting her hat.

"I'm here to see you," Luffy said, looking up at Kaya. "I wanted to ask a favor."

"A favor? From me?" she asked, surprised by the rubbery stranger.

"Uh-huh," Nix walked over to stand between Nami and Zoro, Sweet-Pea clasped firmly in her arms. "I was wondering if you could help us get a boat."

"You there!" Klahadore, really Captain Kuro, said, walking up to them briskly. "What do you think you're doing?" Feeling some movement from Sweet-Pea, Nix looked down to see him waving his fingers back and forth in a familiar pattern.

"What the-" she mumbled, surprised and a little aprehensive that the baby Pokemon would be using Metrenome. That move completely unpredicatble. Nix was so mesmerized by the spiked ball type Pokemon that she didn't even notice Kuro insulting Usopp or the sharpshooter running past them to slug the butler/pirate in the face.

But she did notice, however, that before the curly haired boy even reached him, a blast of light shot from Sweet-Pea and at Kuro. The Solarbeam knocked the man off his feet, sending him to the ground and his glasses flying.

"Togeprrrriiiiii!" the baby trilled happily, thrilled that it sent the poop-suit wearing man to the ground.

"What," Zoro asked, staring at the Pokemon he had been holding only a few moments ago. "The hell was that?

* * *

A/N: About Nix collapsing last chapter: her energy was depleted. Using the gloves forced her chakra from her body, exhausting her. Since she hasn't practiced anything with it, chakra isn't easy for her to manipulate. Also, how many people are Zoro fans? And if you want to see a picture of Nix, look at our profile avatar!

- **Perona** - thanks for **Story Alerting** and **Favoriting**!  
- **irenia** - thanks for **Story Alerting** and **Favoriting**!  
- **JediFanPadawan** - thanks for **Favoriting**!  
- **ichigo1508** - thanks for the **Review**! Don't you just hate cliffhangers? They're fun for the authors but horrible for the readers.  
- **.is..** - thanks for **Story Alerting** and the **Review**!  
**Nix**: A cookie? For me? [_hugs_] Thank you!

* * *

**Omake: _Tophat_**

Zoro stared imapssively at the ground. He had been tied up for three weeks. One more and he would be a free man. Of course, it was a strike against his dignity, but he could handle it. After all, the girl and her mother had done nothing. They deserved to be protected.

He blinked hearing a few unfamiliar voices. His silverish eyes landed on the three figures sitting atop the wall. There was a boy with glasses and pink hair sitting beside a boy in a red vest, knee-length jean shorts, and a straw hat. The latter looked at him with curiosity while the other stared in fear. However, the most unusal of the spectators was the girl.

She wore a knee-length black jacket that had a hood on it over a black tanktop and some blue jeans. A black locket rested on her collar bone, the silver chain glinting in the bright sunlight. A black top hat sat on her head, tips of black hair peeking out from beneath it. A bright crimson ribbon was tied around the base, like a splash of fresh blood.

"Don't worry, I could protect us." the straw hat wearing boy said confidently.

"Hey you three!" Zoro said suddenly. The pinkette jumped, nearly slipping off the wall. The girl turned her green eyes towards him, piercing him with her gaze. "You're an eyesore. Get lost." She grinned, absentmindedly pulling her companion up to a more secure perch.

"I resent that statement," she told him, grinning. "It thought I looked pretty good." Zoro snorted.

Strange girl, but strangely enough, those few words made him like her.


	6. What a Filler!

Happy Late Birthday Aro And Nix!

**Chapter Six**

**What a Filler!**

**Aka: Kuro's Plan Revealed! Usopp's Allies!**

[Previously, on One Fall:]

_"I'm here to see you," Luffy said, looking up at Kaya. "I wanted to ask a favor."_

_"A favor? From me?" she asked, surprised by the rubbery stranger._

_"Uh-huh," Nix walked over to stand between Nami and Zoro, Sweet-Pea clasped firmly in her arms. "I was wondering if you could help us get a boat."_

_"You there!" Klahadore, really Captain Kuro, said, walking up to them briskly. "What do you think you're doing?" Feeling some movement from Sweet-Pea, Nix looked __down to see him waving his fingers back and forth in a familiar pattern._

_"What the-" she mumbled, surprised and a little aprehensive that the baby Pokemon would be using Metrenome. That move completely unpredicatble. Nix was so __mesmerized by the spiked ball type Pokemon that she didn't even notice Kuro insulting Usopp or the sharpshooter running past them to slug the butler/pirate in the face. _

_But she did notice, however, that before the curly haired boy even reached him, a blast of light shot from Sweet-Pea and at Kuro. The Solarbeam knocked the man off his __feet, sending him to the ground and his glasses flying._

_"Togeprrrriiiiii!" the baby trilled happily, thrilled that it sent the poop-suit wearing man to the ground._

_"What," Zoro asked, staring at the Pokemon he had been holding only a few moments ago. "The hell was that?"_

[Present]

"Heh heh," Nix said nervously, tightening her grip on Sweet-Pea. "Oops!" Then she took off running, vaulting over the hedge and leaving a dust trail behind her.

She finally stopped by the boats, collapsing in exhaustion.

"Prii?" Sweet-Pea asked, prodding her cheek.

"Y-you're an idiot," she panted, lifting the little Pokemon so she could look him in the eye. Sweet-Pea cheerfully and patted Nix's face with his little hands, a lot like a baby would. She sighed, unable to be irritated with the Pokemon. She hugged him and laid there for a moment before getting up. "We should probably go find the others so we can plan out the attack."

"Prii!" Sweet-Pea said, nodding importantly.

* * *

"Maybe he went after the Captain?" Nix heard Zoro say as she walked up to the fence behind them. "As for Nix, who cares?" A tick went off in the Magician's temple and she moved silently, crouching behind the swordsman and glaring at the back of his head.

"You should care," she growled, making him jump. "But who cares if I drop you off a cliff or something."

"Where the hell did you come from?" he demanded, meeting her glare.

"Over there," she said, pointing behind her. "Where's Luffy and Usopp?"

"The Captain should be 'there'." Pepper told Carrot. Nami looked down at them from her perch on the fence.

"Yeah, the East coast. Whenever he's troubled, he always goes there."

"Want to go and check on them?" Pepper asked, looking at them. Nix shook her head and sat behind Zoro, leaning against the post her was sitting against.

"Nah," she said. "They'll be fine. By the way, where's Pixel."

"He followed Onion." the boys told her. "He always disappears. Then he'll come out of nowhere, screaming like crazy."

"It's horrible!" Onion screamed, running down the road right on cue, Pixel at his heels.

"See?" Carrot asked, looking at the other boy.

"A man walking backwards! A very weird man is coming this way!" Onion stopped in front of them, pointing at the road behind him.

"PIIII!" Pixel wailed, leaping into Nix's arms.

"Liar." the other two Usopp Pirates chorused, not moving a muscle.

"It's true!" Onion protested. "Look!" Everyone turned to see the moonwalking Jango, or DJango as he was called in the manga, making his way towards them.

"Hey," he said, turning to them. "Who called me weird?" Nix stared. Jango was just weird. High sock-thingies, green pants that were too light to match his gloves, a blue jacket over an over sized T-shirt and a matching hat. To top that off, he had that mushroom stalk on his chin from not bathing enough and heart shaped sunglasses. Not cool "I am not weird."

"Looks like a weirdo to me." Pepper said pointing at him.

"That's ridiculous." Jango protested.

"Nope," Nix said, still staring. "You the one of the weirdest things I've ever seen."

"What was the weirdest?" Zoro asked, half grinning.

"My aunt Tila making a turkey tap dance like a puppet." Nix shuddered. "The horror."

"I'm just a hypnotist passing by." Nix rolled her eyes. Lies!

"A hypnotist?" Onion asked excitedly. Nix rolled her eyes as the man tried to show off and ended up putting the boys, Pokemon, and himself to sleep. Nix sighed and prodded Pixel, eliciting a snore from the fox-type.

"What the hell was that?" Zoro shouted, making Nix snort.

"That was stupidity."

* * *

[from here on is taken from the manga]

After Jango had been dragged off by Kuro, which surprised Nami (Nix already knew who he really was and Zoro just raised his eyebrows), and the boys had been roused from their short nap, the three StrawHats (well, five if you count the Pokemon) lazed around, waiting for their captain or, in Nix's case, waiting for the scream that would send them to the cliff base.

"CAPTAAAAIN!" There it went. Nix opened her eyes lazily in time to see Usopp sprinting for the village. She yawned and shifted slightly, continuing to pet Pixel.

"Wasn't he with Luffy?" Zoro asked, blinking as he stood.

"I think he's still mad about that butler insulting his father." Nami said, looking after him.

"I see," Zoro said, leaning on one arm against the fence. Nix rolled her eyes and pushed his arm, causing him to lose his balance and fall. Nix stood, ignoring his angry shouts and picked her Pokemon up, heading for the cliffs. She would have waited for the three boys to lead her, but she had a way of finding Luffy.

"Can you smell where he was coming from?" she asked Pixel, who cooed and jumped from her arms, walking steadily towards the scent of salt air and barbeque.

Not fifteen minutes after they left, the others came running up behind them.

"Wait!" Nami exclaimed, stopping abruptly. "How did you know where they're taking us?"

"I didn't," she said, shrugging. "I had Pixel find Luffy's scent."

"Oh," Nami blinked and turned back to the path. Nix attempted to follow her, but was stopped by a tan hand grabbing her wrist. She blinked up at Zoro, who was glaring down at her.

"What?" she asked innocently, tipping her head to the side.

"Why are you always doing stuff to embarrass me?" he demanded, and Nix surpressed a shiver from the irritation that flowed from his silver white eyes.

"Because," she said, carefully trying to pull her wrist away from the swordsman, but the sea foam haired man merely tightened his grip and waited. "I'm a prankster and you're the easiest to target. Besides, that blush is cute on you."

Zoro glared as she grinned at him, the telltale blush of embarrasement showing slightly on his cheeks. Nix's grin widened impossibly, until it was almost Luffy-like. Zoro narrowed his eyes at her and yanked on her wrist, making her stumble and fall against him. Suddenly, she found her face pulled up until it was mere inches away from his.

For one very scary moment, she thought he was going to kiss her, but he merely pulled her lip up instead. Not romantic at all.

"W'a a' 'ou doin'?" she said around his finger, glaring at him with irritated emerald eyes.

"You have fangs." he said finally, releasing her. Nix stumbled back, wiping her chin where some drool had collected.

"They're not fangs!" she pouted, crossing her arms. "They're just sharper than normal."

"They look a lot like fangs, like dogs have." he paused. "Or foxes." Nix leveled him with another glare, making him flinch internally. Women scared even Zoro when they were angry.

"We should go," she said icily, turning away from him. It wasn't her fault she was so sensative about her teeth. She got enough grief because of her hair.

* * *

Ten minutes after the strange confrontation, the crew had found their captain and woke (is that correct?) him, via Nix tossing a couple of exploding cards at his head.

"What!" Carrot shouted, echoed by his other two Veggie-pals.

"Miss Kaya's gonna be killed?"

"Pirates are going to attack the village?"

"Yup," Luffy said simply. Nix glanced back at him before continuing to moodily skip stones into the ocean, where they were hungrily swallowed by the cold waters. "That's what they said! No doubt about it!"

"Strange place to take a nap," Zoro commented, looking around.

"I thought I was on top of the cliff." Luffy said, looking up and frowning.

"You probably fell," Nix said, pointedly ignoring the swordsman of the group, who frowned at her. Was she still mad at him?

"That butt-ler guy is really bad!" Carrot exclaimed, clenching his fists.

"I never did like him," Pepper declared, putting his hands on his hips. Nix smiled to herself. Kids, no matter how old they were, usually banded together against someone if they went against one of their friends. She remembered that from high school.

"And the hypnotist's a bad guy too!" Onion finished, sounding slightly disappointed.

"PI!" Pixel wailed, collapsing. His mistress looked at him blankly, green eyes blinking slowly. The natural redhead shrugged, tossing another rock.

One. Two. Three skips.

She ignored the rest of the conversation, remaining where she stood as everyone ran off, including Pixel.

"I swear he likes Luffy better," she mumbled, once again put out by the Pokemon's attactment to the rubber boy. Then her tone took on a sarcastic edge. "Oh, yes. Just forget all about me. You still love me, right?" she added hopefully, looking down at Sweet-Pea.

"Pri?" the baby trilled in confusion before running off after the others.

"I feel so unloved."

* * *

"You know, I find it weird that no matter how lost I get, I always end up where I'm supposed to be." Nix said, emerging from the tree line. "It's like I'm the opposite of the marimo." She paused. "Eh, I gotta give him a personal nickname."

She walked up behind the crew, wrapping her arms around Zoro's chest and resting her chin on his shoulder. Ah, the wonders of being tall.

Zoro jumped, staring down at her. How did he not notice her presence. Nix looked up at him, all traces of hostility gone, lips graced with a sly grin.

"Boo!" she said, turning her eyes to Usopp, who was clutching his arm as he walked to the beach with Nami and Luffy. "Why's long nose bleeding?"

"We're about to find out," Zoro said, reaching behind him and grabbing Nix's collar, nearly strangling the red head as she was pulled onto the swordsman's shoulders.

"Gah! Put me down _kaiso_!" the green haired man stopped abruptly, looking at her curiously. Nix took the opportunity to scramble around on his face, feet digging in painfully to the swordsman's back and she hooked her legs around his waist, signifigantly more comfortable riding piggy back. "Much better."

"What did you call me?" he asked, trying to look at her. Nix flushed, glad he couldn't see her face. She had called him seaweed, but he didn't need to know that did he? At least she had the nickname issue resolved.

"Eh? Nothing important, now. . . MUSH!" she shouted, poking him in the ribs. Zoro yelped and grabbed her legs before running to catch up with the others.

* * *

By the time they reached the cliffs, it had grown dark. The cresent moon hung high in the night sky, providing a pretty picture. Nix took advantage of the fact, sketching the beach while she listened to the plan.

"It's 'cause I'm a liar," Usopp said, hanging his head. There was pain behind his words, a kind the anime and manga couldn't express. It was a pain of not being able to protect what you loved. Nix's grip tightened on her pencil as her hand stopped moving. She relaxed when Usopp continued to speak. "No one'll believe me! I should've known!" She pretty muched tuned the rest of his words out, listening again when she heard Luffy speak.

"- we're going to help you." the rubbed man said, stretching his arm to loosen it up. Nami put her hands on her hips, looking stern.

"I'm telling you now, the treasure's all mine!" Nix smiled. Under Arlong's command or not, she'd never lose her love of money.

"Huh?" Usopp mumbled, sniffling. He looked up at the pirates with wide eyes, wiping them with the palm of his hand.

It became silent. Nix listened to the waves slapping against the rocks.

Her green eyes, Zoro noticed, glowed in the night. It was almost inhuman, he noticed with a shiver. People often told him his eyes could pierce and terrify a person, but Nix's eyes, they went right through a person.

"You guys," Usopp said slowly, trying to understand. "Are willing to fight beside me? Why?"

"You're outnumbered right?" Nix asked. Usopp looked up at her and recoiled as her eyes reflected moonlight. Like an animal's!

"You look pretty scared." Zoro continued, making the sniper jump to his feet.

"ME?" he shouted, pointing to himself. "SCARED? HA! TH-THAT'S A L-LAUGH! OUTNUMBERED OR NOT, I'LL BE F-FINE! I'm Captain Usopp, brave warrior of the sea!"

Usopp looked down at his knees, which were shaking worse than an angry chihuahua. He hit them angrily. "Hey! D-darn. . . Darn! Darn it! What are you looking at? I'm going up against Captain Kuro's pirates! Of course I'm scared! So what? I don't want your pity! You guys can stop laughing! Leave!" Everyone just stared at him. Nix's eyes flickered to Zoro as he spoke.

"We're not laughing at you. We're impressed. That's why we're going to help you." Nix nodded solemnly.

"I'd be afraid for you if you weren't scared." She said, amused at the idea of a fearless Usopp.

"Who'd risk their life out of pity?" Luffy growled. Usopp began to cry.

"Y-you guys!"

* * *

A/N: Eh, we got nothing. Life caught up, blah blah blah you don't want to hear our excuses, we know. yea. . . Kaiso means seaweed

**Review Corner!**

**xXxDragonxPhoenixXx**:

_I love how you write Nix and Zoro together. Makes me want to read your story even more. I loved the part where Zoro is holding Sweet-Pea, and Nix commented on how _

_cute it was._

Thanks! It's fun to write the interaction between them. Nix is gonna tease Zoro a lot in the future.

**secretdewdrop**:

_haha I like it already, although I hope you won't make the whole focus of the story on a romance instead of the one piece plot. I eagerly await a new chapter =)_

Thanks! Eh, we don't plan on centering it around a romance, but it'll still be there, just very slow going.

**ichigo1508**:

_nu! the horror! lol anyway good job!_

Ah, cliffys! Thanks! ;)

**AiriiSpade**:

_I love this story, so please keep going! :)_

Thanks! We've got a lot planned for this, so we'll keep going!

Thanks to **secretdewdrop**, **AiriiSpade**, **captain choco head** and **Jhonie** for Story Alerting and Favoriting!


	7. Battle on the Hill!

**One Fall**

**Chapter Seven**

**Battle on the Hill!**

**Aka: Crescent Moon**

A half an hour later, they positioned themselves at the top of the hill. The two Pokémon were nowhere to be found. Sweet-Pea was safely in the locket with Steve while Pixel was waiting by the boats on the other shore. At the first sign of pirates, he would come warn Nix if time permitted.

The two women grinned down the slope at their work. It wouldn't go as planned, but they still had the right to admire their work, yeah?

"They'll come up this slope for sure!" Usopp explained. "There's sheer cliffs everywhere else and this is the only path to the village. So, if we defend this path, we can protect the village!"

"Piece of cake!" Luffy grinned. Nix frowned at them.

"Long-nose, are you **sure** this is the only path to the village? What about where we came up?" Usopp looked startled.

"I didn't consider that since they planned on this beach. We'll need to head over there then. What can you guys do?"

Nix grinned. She had been waiting for this moment. Now, she had to say something both impressive and witty.

"I cut," Zoro said, crossing his arms.

"I stretch," Luffy shouted.

"I steal," Nami frowned.

"I blow shit up!" Nix exclaimed, grinning evilly.

"I run and hide," Usopp said flatly.

Everyone jumped to their feet.

"You've gotta fight!" Nami and Zoro popped him on the back of the head while the more childish crew members sat back and watched him get beat up.

A bit after that, they found themselves at the other shore. The boats had been moved out of sight and the treasure hid inside a hollow log atop the cliff. Usopp had realized that Nix had been right once he caught sight of the pirate ship in the distance. He attempted to stop shaking in his boots from his hiding place on the top of the cliff. Nix was positioned in the same place as him, just on the opposite cliff. The others were hiding inside the tree line.

The plan was for Usopp and Nix to take out however many they could with their explosives while the pirates slipped and slid down the oiled hill. If it looked like they would bypass it, the others would intervene. They were all hoping that help wouldn't be necessary.

Dawn approached.

Nix could hear Luffy giggling and Usopp's teeth chattering.

"Here they come," Zoro muttered.

All eyes went to the shore.

"Landfall, me boys!" DJango roared as they anchored at the shore. "Alright you bilge cats! Hit the beach! Sack the village and capture the mansion!"

"YAAARR!" the pirates shouted, running up the hill . . . just as they planned! Nix grinned and accidently caught her allies' attention. All of them but Luffy shivered at the evil gleam in her eyes.

"Fire in the hole!" she whispered, dropping the entire deck of charged cards off the cliff side. A minute later, she and Usopp were thrown back from the force of the blast. The three Straw Hats in the trees glanced at them in concern before looking to see what the damage had done to the Black Cat pirates.

Almost half of them had been injured or incapacitated by the blast, much to Usopp's relief. The sharp shooter loaded his slingshot and started firing down at the unsuspecting pirates. Nix managed to drag herself back in time to watch, face blackened by ash and a giddy smile on her face.

"What the hell is going on here?" DJango cried hysterically.

"Captain! There's somebody on the top of the cli-gahh!"

The green-eyed girl whooped delightedly as Usopp shot down the messenger easily. Luffy's laughter rang out over the beach.

"Wow! This really is a piece of cake!"

He stepped out of the forest, grinning happily. Nix scrambled to her feet and ran to join them, nearly tripping on her way over there. Zoro frowned at her.

"You're bleeding," he informed her, lightly prodding the side of her head. The natural red head blinked and touched her head. Sticky, scarlet fluid coated her fingers.

"Owww!" she whined, finally feeling the throbbing in her head. The swordsman snorted at her and pulled out a black bandanna out of his pocket, just like the one tied around his arm. Nix eyed it warily. "How many of these do you have?"

"It's a spare," he muttered, tying it around her head to staunch the bleeding. "You're loosing a lot of blood." Nix grinned.

"Aww, are you worried?" she teased. The marimo scowled at her. "It's a head wound, it'll bleed for a while, and they always do. Don't fret too much!" She pulled away and went to stand by Luffy.

Usopp came over too.

"I ran out of ammunition." he panted, glancing fearfully at the pirates still standing.

"I'll handle it!" the captain grinned, stretching his body. "Gum Gum. . . ROCKET!" He launched himself flying, sending the men flying like bowling pins.

The others took that as the signal to go and pulled out their respective weapons before jumping over the oil and leaping into the fray.

Nix went back to back with Usopp, blowing people away while he bashed them with one of his hammers. He was pretty efficient with it, though marksmanship would always be his forte.

The Magician grabbed Nami by the back of her shirt as she tried to run by.

"Look!" the older girl murmured, pointing at the two figures emerging from the ship and stopping at the railing to examine the fight.

While the two girls were watching the ship, Zoro and Luffy were cutting bad guys and cracking skulls. Luffy nudged one of the fallen pirates with his foot. The poor man groaned.

"Hey, they're still alive! They've got real spunk!"

DJango screamed in frustration.

"We don't have time for this! Listen up men; if our opponents are strong then we must become stronger!" He pulled out his ring and began to swing it. "Everybody watch this ring! When I say 'One, Two, DJango,' you'll all become superhumanly strong and all your wounds will heal instantly! And you'll keep getting stronger and stronger!"

"What's going on?" Luffy asked in confusion.

Nix grabbed Nami and Usopp and pulled them down behind a boulder.

"Hypnotism!" Nami cried, peeking around the giant rock with Usopp. "He's trying to make them believe they're getting stronger! What a load of crap!"

"I don't think so," Nix shouted, ducking down as DJango counted. With the roar of the pirates and the hypnotized Luffy ringing through the air, she wondered if everything had just gotten more complicated.


	8. AN

This story has been discontinued for the time being due to a major edit of all our stories and a general rewriting of all of our stuff. One Fall is being deleted and replaced by **Captivated**, which has better grammar and a less Sueish leading lady.


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